


O.T.S.F.

by JellyJames



Category: Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective, Layton Kyouju Series | Professor Layton Series, 逆転裁判 | Gyakuten Saiban | Ace Attorney
Genre: Canon Compliant, Character Development, Comedy, Crossover, Drama, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Family Fluff, Investigations, LGBTQ Themes, Light Angst, Multi, Murder Mystery, Non-Canon Relationship, POV Alternating, Romantic Fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-21
Updated: 2019-04-17
Packaged: 2019-04-25 22:58:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 22,922
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14388873
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JellyJames/pseuds/JellyJames
Summary: Set on Ghost Trick's new timeline, a year after Professor Layton and the Unwound Future and days after the end of Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies this story merges the plots of GT, PL, and AA in a coherent way making as little changes to canon as possible. Detective Lynne, Professor Hershel Layton and Ace Attorney Phoenix Wright join forces to uncover the truth behind the mysterious organization pulling the strings behind the scenes.





	1. Hello, old friend!

**Author's Note:**

> Set on Ghost Trick's new timeline, a year after Professor Layton and the Unwound Future and days after the end of Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies this story merges the plots of GT, PL, and AA in a coherent way making as little changes to canon as possible. Some minor plot points may differ. Through the story the POV will switch between the different GT, PL and AA characters at the start of every new chapter. Heavy spoilers from Ghost Trick, Ace Attorney Dual Destinies, Professor Layton and the Azran Legacy and Professor Layton and the Unwound Future are included, so it is recommended to at least have played those four games before reading. This story does not take any plot points from or reference "Professor Layton vs Ace Attorney" in any way. Ships are not central to the story, but there will be some either referenced or explicitely stated that I can't mention without spoiling the plot (No incest, child/adult pairings or big age gaps if you are worried about that). There will be two endgame OC/Canon ships for two characters whose partner has only been mentioned in canon. Also I am not a native english speaker so please have mercy on me.

“Are you sure about this, Master?” The older man asked me, it was obvious he was worried about me. Hell, when wasn’t he? But if I have to be honest, he had all the reasons to. It is not the first time something like this happened. He always says that it doesn’t matter, that he will follow me until the very end. Yet I can tell that he is not being completely honest. Most of my plans are reckless and involve a lot of risks, and even if I don’t show it I feel guilty about making him worry so much… But someone has to do what has to be done.

“I am” I lied “You don’t need to worry so much, before the end of the night we will have all the names we need” Or that was what I hoped. No, I had to. There was no other choice. I had to finally find the one responsible. After all, they were the only person in the world who knew what really happened to her. They were the only one who could tell me where to find her.

“If I can tell you the truth, master, when you told me we were going on a new adventure, infiltrating Swift’s headquarters wasn’t what I had in mind” There he goes again. I already know where this conversation is going, and how couldn’t I? It’s not the first time something like this happens either.

“If there is a chance that Soleil is still alive, then I will take it” That sounded harsher than intended, but at that moment I had more important things in mind that sounding ‘nice’

“…I understand. Please be careful”

“I will” I tried to sound as secure as possible.

“Do you promise?” Now that was new. Raymond was worried enough to need that extra reassurance, and again I don’t blame him. After all, it’s out of sheer luck that I am still alive at this very moment.

“I promise” This won’t be like the Azran Sanctuary. I won’t throw my life away so easily. Thanks to Aurora I have a new purpose, a new reason to live: I will make it up for them, in hopes that they can forgive me for everything I have done in search of revenge.

I moved quickly through the roofs of the building, making sure to not draw attention to myself. Jean Descole was once again in action, and he was determined to win. No, I was determined to win. The moment I put my mask on I felt as if I could do anything. As if nothing, not even destiny, could stop me. Even if I’m not searching for revenge anymore, there is no way I could throw this away. Feeling so unstoppable, fearless and… free.

I took a peek from one of the windows of the building; there were only a few agents inside, patrolling, probably searching for troublemakers like me. Targent took a hard hit after Leon Bronev got arrested. Almost all of their remaining agents had fled, and the ones that were unable to were quickly found by the Interpol. Of course, Targent hadn’t completely disbanded yet: Agent Swift had taken control of the organization the moment Bronev got left in hopes that humanity could “become better than the Azrans”. What a fool. He is an assassin. Who knows how many lives were lost to his hands, and now he wants to act as if his intentions were pure since the beginning. As if that somehow erased all the suffering he has caused.

Thankfully, he wasn’t as good of a leader as Bronev. Even at a single glaze, you could notice that they were completely disorganized. They have such ambitious plans, yet not enough people or resources to make them work. I had been here before. I took notes of their routines, and of how they patrolled around the building. I knew all of the weak spots in their security. There was a window of time in which the archive room was completely empty. I only had to get inside, search for the documents I needed and leave. No one would even notice that I had been there. This was going to be extremely easily… Or so I thought before I saw the Interpol vehicles parked behind the building at the other side of the street.

Yeah, Targent was not even a shadow of what it was with Swift as its new leader. Ever since the incident in the Azran sanctuary the Interpol had been quick at finding and securing the remains of Targent, arresting any agents they could find along the way. Agent Lestrange must have been very busy, searching for all those rats and making them come out from their hiding spots. Targent’s security was laughable at best; the Interpol was going to get inside quickly and the moment they put their hands on their archives I could say goodbye to the information I needed. It couldn’t let them stop me, it was now or never.

Once there was no one around I quickly entered the building from one of the windows at the roof. I ran through the hallways, knocking over any agent that stood in my way. Attacking them from behind, taking them by surprise, kicking them in the gut and doing anything I could think of to move fast and not having to lose even a second. I had planned to be way more careful, but now that the Interpol was involved there was no time to lose. I quickly got inside the archive and started searching for the documents I needed.

I opened the cabinets, searching and reading faster than I had in my entire life. I was so close. Targent keeps an archive of all their missions, of all the people they are interested in and of all the agents that work for them –especially the ones that have betrayed them- If I could find the archive, I would be able to know which agent was the one that took everything away from me. I could hear a big commotion in the distance: Interpol had already gotten inside the building. I had to find the documents and get out quick.

I found something different. I don’t know why, but for some reason these files in particular caught my interest. It was about an incident involving some sort of time machine. I gave a quick look at it and was able to read the name “Bill Hawks” Wasn’t he the Prime Minister of London? Well, he wouldn’t be the Prime Minister anymore if these files got to the news. I had no time for this, I thought, I still haven’t found the archives I needed. I was about to resume with my search when I heard the metal doors of the archive starting to close. Time was up. I had no idea of where was what I needed and if those doors closed I would be trapped like a mouse for the Interpol, or worse, for Swift. And I had promised Raymond that I would be careful. Shit.

I ran as fast as I could to get out of the room before the doors closed. I was wrong. Jean Descole couldn’t do anything he proposed to. I wasn’t fast enough. I barely made it out of the room, well, at least most of my body made it outside. My arm felt like if it had been ripped off, and I couldn’t move over the pain. I fell to the floor, screaming and closing my eyes. The only thing I could see was red. When I finally looked up there was a gun pointed at my forehead. Shit shit shit this was not good at all. The person holding it was talking to me, but I couldn’t make sense out of their words over the pain.

“Look who came to the party: Jean Descole. What a surprise. Do you like our new security doors? I just had them installed last week. I bet they caught you off guard, didn’t they?” It was Swift. He laughed, enjoying my suffering.

“You caused me and boss a lot of trouble, you know?” He continued. Damn, I had no time for this “Well, I guess he isn’t my boss anymore. I am the boss now, did you know that? Leon Bronev might have abandoned us and our cause, but I haven’t” Does this man ever shut up? “I almost feel bad for you. Almost. That must hurt like hell. You know what? I am going to do you a favor, just so you can’t say I never did anything good for you. I’m going to get you out of your misery” Get to the point already. “Goodbye, Jean, your sad little tale ends here.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t be so sure about that if I were you” I heard a female voice say. Someone new had gotten into the hallway. How the hell did she? I didn’t even hear her coming. I looked up, and there was a blonde haired woman on a uniform –Interpol’s uniform- with a gun pointed at Swift’s head. “Drop the gun, now” He really had no other choice but obeying. “See? That’s a lot better. Sorry for interrupting your monologue, but you are under arrest in the name of Bella Lestrange from Interpol” She didn’t sound sorry at all.

“Bella, please take this more seriously” I heard a familiar voice say besides me, but from this angle I couldn’t see their face “Just put the cuff on him already so we can- Oh shit, he’s bleeding!” Finally someone had noticed the poor injured masked man on the floor “Call the boss, I’m going to get the door to open” He started pushing, and the door began to open. Wait, was that a good idea? Wouldn’t that make me bleed even more? I don’t have enough energy to think of an answer. Two other Interpol agents came in and finally took Swift off the scene while he screamed, claiming that this wouldn’t be the last we see of him.

“Boss! Call an ambulance! Jean Descole is on the building… No, wait- Just listen to me for a second! He is injured. There is blood everywhere and- There is no time for that, just do what I’m telling you already!” She hanged. I might be about to bleed out, but I highly doubt that that is a good way to address your boss. I started to lose consciousness when the man who had gotten the door to open stood in front of me, dangerously close to my face. I definitely know this man… What is Daniel even doing here?

“I have finally found you… I have been searching for you for so long. I knew there was no way you could have died. I knew you were still alive” I feel his hands touching near my mask, but I have no energy to do anything about it “Finally, after all this time… I will know who you are” The mask was off, and there was silence for a moment. I doubt he expected things to turn out this way. “Desmond?!” He screamed. ‘Hello, old friend’ I thought before I finally lost consciousness.


	2. Welcome home!

“Lynne, please wait for me!”

“Oh! I’m sorry Liam. Sometimes I don’t notice how fast I’m walking” I laughed, while waiting for my friend to catch up with me “But with the news you got, I’m surprised you don’t want to get out of this airport as fast as you can”

“Flights are exhausting. I didn’t get any sleep at all. The seats were too uncomfortable and there were some really loud kids sitting behind us” He pouted.

“Really? I didn’t notice. I guess I was too deep in sleep land to know” I tried to cheer him up a little.

“Good for you” He sighed. “Let’s just get our luggage and go home. The bed is calling me and I don’t know for how long I will be able to stay awake”

“Sure- Wait, what? You want to go to sleep?” He has to be kidding me. After we got chief prosecutor Edgeworth’s email we took the first flight to Los Angeles and now he is telling me that he wants to go to sleep? “Don’t you want to go see him first?”

“See him?” He looked at me, clueless. Oh don’t try to play dumb with me.

“You know who I’m talking about. Your boyfriend finally got out of jail and all you want to do is go to bed?”

“H-he is not my boyfriend!” He jumped at that, making the bell that was around his neck sound. Awkward “He is just an old friend.”  

 “Okay then. Your ‘old friend’ just got out of jail. I thought you wanted to see him as soon as possible. Wasn’t that the reason you were so fast to get us the plane tickets? Don’t tell me you are chickening out now that we are already here…”

“Is not that easy, Lynne. It has been so long… And I barely went to visit him because I was too busy travelling all over the country while he was trapped rotting in a cell” 

“Don’t be so harsh on yourself. You were working”

“That’s no excuse. I should have made time… I’m sorry I ruined our vacation for this”

“You didn’t ruin anything, I promise. We had lots of fun while we were there, and to be honest I’m happy we will get to spend the holidays here on Los Angeles with Jowd and his family”

I suppose is time I present myself. My name is Lynne, and I’m a detective! Hey, I might sound childish but I take this job very seriously! Being a detective was my dream since I was a little kid. I wanted to be just like my hero, detective Jowd! I finally got my badge last year, but being honest I haven’t got any big cases yet… But that doesn’t matter! I’m sure I will get an important case sooner than later!

The short, messy brown haired guy with the oversized jacket in front of me is Liam. He is a veterinarian, and he has been my roommate since I was studying to become a detective. Until just recently we had been on a vacation on the beautiful beaches of Margarita Isle, but we took the first flight we could to Los Angeles after the chief prosecutor sent Liam an email telling him that his boyfriend had been proven innocent in court.

“Could you please stop saying that? It’s nothing like that…”

“But he is close enough to you to have the chief prosecutor, of all people, to send you an email with the good news” Gotcha!

“W-well, that’s because he knows I have been following the case all these years…”

“And you did so because you care about him” I love teasing him, isn’t that obvious?

“Lynne you know very well that I… Ah, forget it. There is no way to win with you, is there?” Okay, maybe I went too far. I ruffled his hair to make him know that everything was okay. Ah, it’s so soft. Like petting a kitten!

“Hmph… Why do you always have to do that?”

“Sorry, sorry. It just looks so fluffy I can’t help myself. Maybe if you tried to keep it under control-”

“I try, but my hair doesn’t want to cooperate” He sighed, again “What am I even going to tell him?” He is the kind of person that worries too much about the little details. “Just because he is free now doesn’t mean that everything is okay. Isn’t that messed up? This should be a happy moment, yet the only thing I can think about is…” He looked away with sadness in his eyes. I know what this is about. I’m not that oblivious. I had decided to not bring it up, just in case he wasn’t ready to talk about it. Just as it seemed that he was going to mention the late detective’s name he decided to change the subject “Can we go, please? I… I promise I will go see him tomorrow if that makes you happy” He wasn’t ready yet, so I decided to not press further.

“Sure! So, where were we supposed to take our luggage again?”

We got our things and decided to head back to our apartment. Just as we were about to leave, I noticed that Liam wasn’t besides me anymore. Was I walking too fast again? Geez. I turned around and saw him looking at one of the TV’s in the airport. It was showing some sort of ice skating competition.

“I know him, did I told you that already?” He asked me, while pointing at the screen. “Well, I was only a baby when we met, but-“

“Yeah right, and I met Klavier Gavin at my seventeen birthday party”

“I’m telling you the truth! Do you even know who he is? Or what happened to him?” Of course I know. Inspector Cabanela told me about the case some time ago.

“He is that Abadie kid that went missing ten years ago isn’t he? No one knows what happened to him”

“Eleven. He went missing eleven years ago, on a day just like this one. After his last performance no one was able to find him, not even his family. Is almost as if he vanished out of thin air” People still remember him after such a long time… “Let’s go, it’s getting late”

When we finally arrived to our apartment I was surprised to find Sissel waiting for us on the couch. He was supposed to be at Jowd’s house while we were away, so what is he doing here now?

“Oh my, what are you doing here little friend?” Liam went to pet him immediately. It doesn’t take much to notice that he is a cat lover “Did you miss us? You are so cute!”

“How did he even get in here? How did he even leave Jowd’s house?”

“Maybe he is smarter than what you give him credit for” I know Sissel is a smart cat, but this is too much, even for him. How did he know we would be here anyways?

“I’m just going to call Jowd to let him know that he is here. Kamila must be really worried about him”

“I don’t think they have noticed that he isn’t with them anymore. If they had, they would have called you” Liam was right. That sure was strange. I decided to call anyways. Jowd didn’t answer the phone, instead his wife Alma did.

“Oh, Alma! How have you been? I just wanted to let you know that Sissel is here at the apartment- No, I don’t know how he got in here. Isn’t he the smartest cat in the world? Wait… Didn’t Jowd tell you I would arrive earlier? Is he there?”

“You are such a pretty cat… Are you really supposed to be twelve years old? After all these years you don’t look any older at all. You kind of remind me of someone I know”

“The Prime Minister of London is dead?! And Jowd is investigating the case? - No, I’m not happy that someone died, Alma… Just- if he calls please tell him I’m going there, okay? Bye!” I hung up. Yes, this was the big case I was looking for. “Liam, I’m going out!”

“What? But we just got home… Lynne!” I had my badge and my coat on before he could finish talking. Jowd had a big case on his hands and I was sure he was going to need my help to solve it! “Have a good night!”

“Well I guess is just you and me for now Sissel… Hey, where did Sissel go?! Ah, I suppose is just me then…”


	3. Surrounded by death

“I don’t want to do anything for like a month” I heard Athena exclaim while sitting -if we can call that position sitting- on the sofa “I can’t believe you want a new case after EVERYTHING that happened last week”

“Well, it wouldn’t be bad to have some extra help to pay this month’s rent. Having a new client wouldn’t be so terrible” Although she is completely right. It is true that our last case was exhausting... physically and emotionally exhausting.

“It’s okay daddy, even if you don’t make enough money for this month I’m sure I will be able to save the office with my special show: The Super December Extravaganza, an entire month filled with holiday based magic tricks made by the one and only Trucy Wright. The people at the wonder bar love it!”

“Uh, Trucy… Are you sure you want to work after what happened?”

“Why wouldn’t I? It’s no big deal, Apollo”

“You were kidnapped, Trucy! How is that not a big deal?!”

“Calm down, chords of steel. If you worry so much about me you are going to start sounding like my dad. Oh I think I can see some gray hairs growing on your horns already, old man”

“So this is what I get for caring about you…” Sighed Apollo, sitting down on the couch next to Athena… Wait, what did she say about my hair?

“Hey, I still don’t have any gray hairs!”

“Then from who were the gray hairs that I found on your pillow the other day?” Oh no. I have to make her drop this conversation immediately.

“Hmmm… Maybe I am graying. Oh well, it was going to happen sooner or later. Hey, talking about graying hair: Athena how is prosecutor Blackquill?” Yes, perfect Phoenix. They won’t even notice your desperate attempts at changing the subject of conversation.

“How is he? I don’t know. Why would I know? Why do you ask me? Why don’t you ask Apollo?” She became tense at the mere mention of prosecutor Blackquill. Did something happen between them?

“Why would I, of all people, know? I barely talk to him. If anyone should know it’s you. Aren’t you supposed to be his childhood friend?”

“That was a long time ago. It’s funny; I spent so much time trying to save him yet now I notice that I barely know him at all. And he doesn’t know me either. I am no longer that shy little kid who barely talked, and he is not longer the quiet and reserved gentleman he used to be. We could be complete strangers for all I know”

“… Okay, what is the real reason you don’t want to talk about him?”

“Because Pearl is already driving me crazy with that whole “special someone” speech she gives me any time anyone even dares to mention him. I am so tired of it. It creeps me out. I’m just a teenager who is barely starting her career; I don’t want to think about getting married to some old man with a terrible attitude! But she thinks I am in love with him just because I did the same thing that the boss did for the chief prosecutor!”

“What… what does Edgeworth have to do with this?” Everyone proceeded to completely ignore me.

“Well, if it bothers you so much… why don’t you tell her to stop?”

“I try Apollo, but she doesn’t let me finish talking before she is back at it again with her overly cheesy fantasies of me and Simon being ‘happily ever after’... It’s kind of gross”

 “I didn’t know Pearls still did those things. I thought that she hadn’t even said the words ‘special someone’ since she was ten years old” Maybe she got tired of teasing me and Maya and now has moved onto Athena and prosecutor Blackquill. “Wait, where is Pearls anyways?”

“Ah! I forgot we were supposed to be playing hide and seek! She has been waiting for me to find her this entire time! Pearl, where are you?!” And she immediately ran towards the door to search for Pearl around the office building. I turned around at the sound of the door opening “Ah, sorry!” I saw Trucy bump into a tall, dark skinned woman in the hallway, yet she didn’t seem to mind.

 “Oh, it’s okay. Don’t worry about it” I got up from my seat to greet her. Could this be the new client I was hoping for?

“What can I help you with, miss…?”

“Please just call me Sissel. Are you, by any chance, Phoenix Wright?” Yes! Now I don’t have to depend on my teenage daughter to pay this month’s rent. Yes, it’s as terrible as it sounds.

“You are correct. What can I do for you? Please, come inside and take a seat”

“Athena, move”

“You move” They have to act like little kids when there is a client in the office, of all times. Thankfully I don’t think she heard anything. I gave the two of them a look, and they both moved to give Sissel a seat in the middle of the sofa.

“Hello! I’m Athena Cykes, attorney at law, and this is my assistant, Apollo Justice!”

“I am not…” If you keep acting like this I will make you clear the toilet again “I am her assistant, Apollo Justice”

“It’s really nice to meet you both. Ah, you remind me of when Yomi and I were younger, filled with joy and hopes for the future”

“Eh… Who exactly is ‘Yomi’?” Athena asked.

“Oh, he is my fiancé. I… I actually came here because of him. It is so sad, Mister Wright. It’s almost as if destiny didn’t want us to be together. First what happened at the park, and now this...? Maybe there is no happiness in this world after all.” I looked at her in the eyes for a moment, and there was such sadness in them that it seemed that she was about to cry.

“W-wait, miss, there is no need to get so down. After all, you have come to the Wright place!” I’m sure it physically pained him to make that pun. He must really want to cheer her up. Even I do.     

“We will make sure to prove his innocence! Believe in us!” I noticed Widget was flashing blue around her neck. “Let’s go, quickly! Give us the details of the case: Who is the victim? Where did it happen? Why does the police think he murdered them? 

“It must be so depressing… being so used to investigating murder cases that you assume that every single client that comes at your door wants you to investigate someone’s death… Oh, I am so sorry” You tried so hard Athena, yet at the end all your efforts were for naught. Oh no, I’m starting to sound like her.

“Wait… Sissel, are you telling me that this isn’t a murder case?” Apollo almost got up from his seat after hearing that.

“No, it is not a murder. The victim is at the hospital, she is not dead… yet” I decided to ignore that last ominous bit.

“I’m sorry for assuming it was a murder, miss”

“It is alright, I don’t blame you. If anything, it makes me feel really bad for you three. You seem so nice, you don’t deserve to be surrounded by death so much that you get used to it” It scares me that I don’t know if she is worrying too much about us or if we are worrying too little about ourselves. “Now, as for you questions: The victim is a woman, but that is all I know. Not even the police knows who she is yet. The incident happened at a restaurant, and the detective in charge affirms Yomiel did it because he was the only one at the scene at the time of the incident”

“Don’t worry. These two got you and your fiancé covered, I assure you” Athena and Apollo were about to protest before Sissel started talking again.

“Really? Oh thank you, thank you so much! I don’t know what I would do without your help. Please, come with me. I will accompany you to the crime scene. I hope you don’t mind me tagging along… I don’t want to be alone right now” And with that the three of them left, Sissel about to cry and Apollo and Athena trying to comfort her. Shortly after they left the office I heard the door opening once again.

“Mister Nick, I think I’m really good at hide and seek!” 


	4. Time to pack up

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I won't be able to get online for some days, but I will be back with a new chapter as soon as I can!

“The tea is ready, professor!” I heard Flora exclaim from the kitchen. “I think I’m getting better at this, you know?” She was really proud of herself as she walked into the room and put two cups of tea on the table in front of me.

“All your efforts are paying off” I slowly took a sip from the cup, Flora looking at me while I did so, impatient “It is very nice, indeed”

“Really? You are not lying to make me feel better, are you?”

“I promise I am not. You have improved a lot, Flora, I’m proud of you” She had the biggest smile on her face after I told her that. And it was true, it was a really nice cup of tea. Her efforts were giving results; I wish I could say the same about her cooking.

Everything has been really quiet ever since Luke left to live with his parents in America a year ago. It truly is hard to believe it has already been an entire year. We have been through a lot, Luke and I. Our adventures tended to get us into the most incredible situations, leaving us with so many memories; some happy, and some… not happy at all. I’m afraid to admit that for some time I wasn’t sure how I was going to manage without having the boy besides me, without someone who has been through so much with me. But Flora… Flora has been my light.

“I was thinking that… maybe we could visit Luke and his family for the holidays. That way we don’t have to spend them alone”

“We are not alone Flora. We have each other”

“I know that but… It would be nice to spend them with more people. And I already know you won’t let me invite Don Paolo”

“He did kidnap you if I remember well” I don’t hold any ill will towards Paul, but I have to admit that he really made me worry sick about Flora when he switched places with her.

“He is not like that anymore. It’s just like with professor Sycamore, right?” That was a name I didn’t expect to hear “What do you think he is doing right now?”

“Causing trouble, most likely”

“He is not going to cause trouble anymore. His days of destroying cities with giant mechanical monsters are over… Or at least that’s what Luke told me”

“Just how much as Luke told you about him?”

“Way more than you” She covered her mouth immediately after saying that “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean for it to come out that way… I know it’s hard for you. That is the reason why I asked Luke to tell me about him after you both left to attend to his trial…” Because she knew I wasn’t going to explain it to her?

“It’s okay Flora. I understand. And besides, you couldn’t sound harsh even if you tried to”

“Hey, now who is the harsh one?” She laughed “Are you really the professor? Oh no, I think Don Paolo switched places with you!”

“Was that too much? I apologize” Lately I have been trying to... How did she call it? ‘Chill out’ ever since Luke left. It was an agreement between the two of us. She would take cooking lessons while I promised I wouldn’t stress myself over being a “full-time perfect English gentleman”. I don’t think it was particularly stressing, but it was enough to make her worry so I agreed. The truth is that I am not very good at this.

“No, don’t apologize. It’s okay. I like it when you act like this. You are usually such a…”

“Don’t hesitate, just say it”

“Serious person... It’s nice to see you having fun for once. And hey, it means that you are comfortable enough with me to fool around like this” I’m fairly sure she was about to say something different, but decided not to after realizing how it would have sounded.

“But what kind of example am I giving you?”

“Professor, you worry way too much” She said before turning on the TV. “Maybe we could go visit him too”

“Visit Desmond? It’s been so long… The last time I saw him he was on trial for his crimes as Jean Descole”

“Well, no matter how much time has passed, I bet he would be happy to see you. It’s like how you always say, right? No matter how long the distance or how much time passes, nothing can break a strong friendship” That is true but… I don’t even know if Desmond considers me to be his friend. Would he really be happy to see me?

 “Hmm… Maybe you are right”

“We are back again at the Embassy, in which the Prime Minister of London, Bill Hawks, was found dead on his office” The TV interrupted us.

“Bill Hawks? Isn’t he the man from one year ago? You know, when Clive almost destroyed London?”

“He certainly is. My word, what happened?”

“Maybe Clive got out of jail and finally got his revenge!” That is highly improbable.

“I’m sure that this isn’t revenge, or at least not Clive’s. If he had escaped prison he would be all over the news by now” And besides, he promised me that he has going to forget about his revenge against corrupt politicians to focus on redeeming himself for his crimes.

“The detectives at the scene affirm that the Prime Minister’s death was definitely a murder. The case basics suggest that someone got past the security, snuck in on the minister’s office and shot him on the head”

“Oh no, that is such a horrible death” I want to know what happened to the Prime Minister, but it might be best if I change the channel for Flora’s sake.

“Wait, someone is coming out of the building. It seems like its Interpol agent Bella Lestrange, and behind her there are two other agents and- Who is the person between them? It seems like they already got the culprit”

“They sure are efficient, right professor?”

“I have a very bad feeling about this” For some reason I already knew how it was going to turn out, and my suspicions got confirmed shortly after.

“It has been confirmed everyone: The most likely suspect for Prime Minister Bill Hawk’s death is Desmond Sycamore, better known as Jean Descole” Flora went completely silent.

“Well… at the end he truly was causing trouble”

“The British were right about not wanting the man to set foot on their land ever again, but not even sending him to Los Angeles to complete his sentence was enough to secure the Prime Minister’s life. The people who claimed that giving him the conditional liberty was a terrible idea must be rejoicing-” I quickly turned off the TV.

“Flora, please go to your room and pack up”

“…” She didn’t answer to me. She was at a loss for words and I don’t blame her at all.

“Flora? Please, we have to take the first plane we can to Los Angeles and-“

“Do you think he did it?” I expected that question “Do you think professor Sycamore would… take the life of someone?”

“I...” I didn’t know. I had no idea. You can never know with a man like Desco- like professor Sycamore.

“You know him better than me. Please answer me: Do you… do you think he is guilty?”

“I sure hope he isn’t…” It was the only thing I could say.


	5. Nightmares

“Lynne, what are you doing here? I thought you were with Jowd investigating the Minister’s death”

“They didn’t let me join the investigation…” My mood dropped to the ground the moment Jowd told me I couldn’t investigate alongside him “Can I come in?”

“Please do so. I’m so sorry sweetie, but maybe it’s better like this. You just got off a really long flight. I bet you must be exhausted. I don’t know how you made it to the embassy like this”

“I wasn’t exhausted before, but now I sure am” I sighed while I went inside the house. “Is Kamila asleep already?”

“Yes, she finally fell asleep” Something about the way she worded that was off.

“What do you mean by finally? I thought Kamila wasn’t one of those kids who doesn’t like going to bed.”

“She isn’t, but lately she has been having these night terrors… They started some months ago and have only gotten worse ever since. She is so scared she doesn’t even want to sleep anymore. We are already taking her with a psychologist, Doctor Federico uh… I don’t remember his last name right now, but the point is I don’t think it’s helping her at all. He is trying really to help her, but so far nothing seems to work”

“Alma, I had no idea… I used to have night terrors as a kid too, so I know how she must be feeling right now… Poor Kamila”

“Do you remember how you got to stop them?”

“I’m sorry, I don’t know. They just stopped one day. I think I got so used to them that one day they didn’t scare me anymore, and after that they never came back”

“Missile is also really worried about her. He is sleeping besides her right now. He has been doing so ever since the nightmares started” Missile is such a good dog. Always ready to do anything for her little master.

“Talking about pets, didn’t you notice that Sissel was missing?”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t. I was so worried about Kamila, and then Jowd left to investigate the Minister’s case… I don’t blame him. I doubt he can say no to a case like that. Oh, sorry, maybe I shouldn’t bring that up”

“It doesn’t bother me, don’t worry. Maybe tomorrow, when the embassy isn’t so crowded, I can give him a hand!” Hopefully.

“Oh yes I saw it on TV earlier. The press is doing anything it can to get some information about the Minister’s murder. I kind of feel sorry for the poor police officers. But I don’t think you will get to do much investigating tomorrow, dear, after all they already caught the culprit”

“They did?! But how?!” Maybe I should have watched the news before going out of the apartment. Ah, that reminds me I left Liam completely alone in there… Well, he said he wanted to rest. Maybe he’ll be happier if he has some alone time.

“It was this criminal… Descole or whatever was his name. He was at the embassy when the police arrived” Alma is not good remembering names.

“That doesn’t make any sense. If he was the culprit, then why did he stay at the crime scene? You would think he would have gotten out of there as fast as he could” I have heard about Jean Descole, but I don’t know much about him. Still that seems like a really foolish mistake for a criminal that is so well known “Ugh, now I really want to investigate this case”

“I have been wondering, Lynne… Why didn’t you go back to your apartment? I’m not saying that I don’t want you here, in fact I feel calmer if you are here with me tonight now that Jowd is busy with work… But you did left your roommate completely alone”

“Oh… I just wanted to see you and Kamila now that I’m back” That was partially a lie. I didn’t want to make a fool of myself in front of Liam because they didn’t let me join the investigation after I left him alone at the apartment… Well, not alone. He is with Sissel after all. That cat, I still wonder: how did he get out of Jowd’s house? I get that cats come and go whenever they want, but to appear in our apartment just in time for me and Liam to find him there... “Maybe Sissel knew we were going to arrive early?”

“Maybe he heard you talking with Jowd” A small voice behind me made me turn around. It was Kamila, followed by Missile, wearing her pajamas and with a face that told me that the nightmares came back again. “He was in the room when you called him. He heard your conversation and after that he left. I think he was worried something bad might happen to you now that everything has been set into motion”

“Kamila, what are you talking about? Do you speak with cats now?”

“I… I don’t know. That’s just the feeling I got after I looked at him. Somehow that’s just what it felt like...”

“Kamila, I think it’s better if you go back to sleep” Alma was worried sick about her, I could tell.

“No! If I go back they will catch me! Don’t make me go back!” Kamila panicked. She didn’t look like herself at all.

“Kamila, no one will come to catch you.  You are safe here. You are safe at home with mom” Alma was trying really hard to comfort her. I wanted to comfort her too, but for some reason I couldn’t move. Something about the things she was saying had frozen me on the spot. I didn’t know what to say or what to do. Something about it felt so… familiar.

“No, I am not safe! No one is safe! We avoided them, but they will come back. They will come back to take what is left!” She started to cry, I could hear her voice breaking. Lynne, please, move. Do something. Alma needs you. Kamila needs you. Why won’t you just move?

“I see them all the time. They took you away from me; they took dad away from me. We sank towards the bottom of the sea to never be found again... The evil shadows with their blue skin” those last words brought me back to reality. I moved quickly and put my arms around Kamila, feeling her trembling against me.

“They won’t come back, because I am here. I promise you. We have a new chance. We won’t let them win this time” Kamila hugged me back, sobbing. Hearing those words had calmed her, somehow. Yet I can’t help but wonder: What was I even talking about? The words just came out of my mouth before I noticed, yet it was exactly what she needed to hear. Alma looked at us with confusion. Just what had just happened? And what did Sissel have to do with it?

“Lynne, I’m so scared… I don’t know what any of this means. I just want to go back to sleep. I want to be able to sleep again…”

“Don’t worry Kamila: no matter how much time it takes I promise that will help you. I will figure out what is wrong, and what needs to be changed in order to help you have sweet dreams again. You are not alone. You have me, and your mother, your father and Uncle Cabanela to help you” I heard Missile bark behind her “And of course you can count on Missile and Sissel too!”

“Okay… Lynne, could you please sleep with me tonight?”

“Ah, I don’t know. Do you mind, Alma?” She hadn’t said anything for quite a while.

“Sure. I don’t mind. Let’s just go to bed, okay?” I will definitely have to explain everything to her tomorrow. The problem is that I have no idea of what just happened. Blue skinned people… sank towards the bottom of the sea to never be found again… Why do those words feel so familiar? And why do they scare me so much?

“Sure. Let’s go, Kamila, okay?”

It took her a long time to go back to sleep again. As for me, I didn’t sleep at all that night. Sissel, did you really go all the way to the apartment because you were worried about me?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It has been a while! I still don't have an stable internet connection, but I will try to post a new chapter as soon as I get the chance. Sorry for keeping you waiting for so long.


	6. Unidentified

“The crime happened at a chicken restaurant? Seriously?” I heard Apollo whisper behind me.

“I am as surprised as you are, I assure you” I guess the Wright Anything Agency has seen worst, though. The place was complete mess: There was a broken table in a corner and a couple of chairs on the floor, and for some reason there was a giant roasted chicken hanging from the ceiling. It almost seemed as if it was moving. But what really caught my interest was the broken window of the second floor at the left.

“I’m sorry for making you come here so late at night. Yomiel is at the detention center right now, but I think we should be able to visit him tomorrow before the trial begins” So we won’t be able to talk to our client until tomorrow, that is not good. I won’t have enough time to properly prepare my case.

“Don’t worry about that for now. We should focus on investigating the crime scene. I do wonder: will you be okay investigating with us, Sissel? Maybe it would be best if you go back home and rest”

“I don’t want to be alone right now… I’m sorry. I won’t bother you, if that is what you are worried about, I promise! I will do everything I can to help you in your investigation. I can’t sit down at home and do nothing while my dear Yomiel needs me!”

“You don’t bother us at all, right Apollo?” I look at him, asking for help.

“I’m going to be honest, Sissel. We don’t mind if you tag along, but I am going to ask you to have faith in us. I know you are worried and I understand that right now everything is scary for you. But please believe me when I tell you that we won’t let you and your fiancé down. Okay?”

“Okay, I believe in you Mister Justice and Miss Cykes. I’m sorry for… well, for being so pessimistic back there at the office”

“You don’t have to apologize, Sissel. We understand that this is really hard for you. But don’t worry: I’m sure that tomorrow Yomiel will be walking out of that courtroom as a free man”

“Yes, yes you are right. I’m sure that he is innocent, and with the two of you proving that in court I have nothing to be afraid of” Now that is a lot better!

“Well, Apollo, time to start our investigation at the Chicken’s Mansion! How should we begin?”

“By going home, I would suggest” We turned around to see a tall, dark skinned man in a long white coat staring at us.

“Let me guess: You are the detective assigned to the case, and you won’t let us investigate the crime scene because the prosecutor assigned to the case told you so. Or am I wrong?” I should have expected to see a new face after what happened at the UR-1 retrial, yet it still surprised me to not see detective Fulbright as the lead detective… There is no need to think about that right now.

“Oooh, I see you are pretty used to this. I have heard about you. You are the Wright Anything Agency kids, right? The ones from the UR-1 retrial... You must be Mister Apollo Justice and you Miss Athena Cykes”

“Haha, yeah… The one and only” I feel Apollo giving me a gentle pat on the shoulder. Like if he was trying to say ‘Hang in there’ with his hand. 

“Hey, why the long face? Come on, I was just joking when I told you I wouldn’t let you examine the crime scene. We already finished with our investigation anyways. Let’s start again, shaaall we? The name is Cabanela, at your service. And I am no detective, I am an Inspector”...which was the difference between the two again? 

“It’s good to meet you Inspector Cabanela, but are you sure you don’t mind if we investigate the crime scene?” Apollo asked.

“Ooof course I am, baby. It’s no problem, really. It wouldn’t change anything anyways” I knew something was up. Classical ‘Your case is hopeless so it won’t hurt us to allow you to waste your time investigating the crime scene’

“Oh no, poor Yomiel…”

“He doesn’t know what he is talking about. The Wright Anything Agency always finds a way to prove its client’s innocence, so don’t listen to him Sissel!” Inspector Cabanela looked at Apollo the moment those words came out of his mouth.

“Sissel?”

“I-Is there something wrong, Inspector” She was as confused as Apollo and me.

“That name…” He kept silent for a moment “It’s nothing; it’s just that my friend Lynne has a cat with that exact same name. But forget about that. Now, I suppose you want to ask me some questions about the case, so feel free to do so. Shoot baby, we don’t have all night after aaall.”

 “Why is there a giant roasted chicken hanging from the ceiling?” I see that you are asking the real questions Apollo.

“I asked myself that as well the first time I came in here. The owner of the restaurant says it’s for the aesthetic. Its just deco, don’t worry. I mean, can you imagine a real life chicken of that size? How wild would that be? Ah, it’s such a shame, yet another crime at this very same restaurant. Lynne loves to come here every day for lunch”

“Wait, what did you just say?”

“… That Lynne loves to come here everyday for lunch. Do you know her?”

“What? No. I meant what you said before that. Was there another crime at this very same restaurant?” Now that piqued my interest.

“Well, not really on this restaurant. It happened on the bank that is on top of it. Two burglars wanted to get the bank’s main safe to open with explosives… I didn’t end well for them. They used too much TNT and got killed by the explosion. The floor below collapsed and the safe with all the money fell down to this very same restaurant. Oh man, that was over a year ago. They weren’t really smart, that is for suuure. But it’s not related to the case at hand, I assure you”

“Well that sure was an… interesting story, Inspector Cabanela. But could you please tell us something about THIS case? Like, who was the victim, for example?”

“The victim was a woman, probably on her thirties. Tall, brown skin with freckles, long brown hair and green eyes. She is currently at the hospital. She has cuts all over her face and body, and a fractured leg. We found her passed out outside the restaurant below that broken window from the left. We believe that the accused pushed her from there. We don’t know her name. She didn’t have any sort of identification with her, and her fingerprints aren’t in our database. That… is really worrisome, to say the least”

“What? Is there truly no way of knowing exactly who this woman is?”

“The Interpol is currently investigating that” Oh man, the Interpol is involved in this case “There are two possibilities: Either her fingerprints have never been registered on Interpol’s database… or they have been erased from it”

“I’m having a hard time understanding any of this, what does it mean?” I heard Sissel ask behind me.

“It means that this woman has spent thirty years of her life without any sort of official document associated with her or that she did had but the data was deleted from our database either by an infiltrator or a hacker. Do you know what that means, baaaby?” We all kept silent for a moment.

“What… what does that mean?”                                                                    

“It means that there is a high chance that this woman is a criminal, but not a simple burglar or murderer. No, this is way more serious than that. There is a chance that this woman is related to a dangerous and powerful criminal organization. That is why the hospital she is currently in is packed full with Interpol agents, just in case she tries to escape. Whatever information she has, I’m sure it will be invaluable for the Interpol”

“But if that’s true then why would someone like that go to a chicken restaurant?”

“Perhaps she had to meet with someone here. I don’t know, baby, has your fiancé been involved with some criminal activity recently? I wouldn’t be surprised if that is the case. After all, this is not the first time something like this happens, isn’t that right? It must be very hard for you, seeing how your fiancé got arrested just a few months after he finally came out of jail” I was about to question Sissel about this, but I was interrupted by the sound of the giant roasted chicken falling from the ceiling.        


	7. Arrival

“I can’t thank you enough for letting us stay at your house, Brenda”

“You don’t have to thank me, Hershel. It is a pleasure to have you and Flora stay for the holidays. I do have to admit that I didn’t expect you to arrive so soon, though. Please, come inside and take a seat. I’m going to prepare some tea for you” After we were seated and Brenda was out of the living room, I noticed that flora was looking at me with an expression of disappointment.

“You didn’t tell her the real reason why we are here…”

 “It would be best if we avoid mentioning Descole” She was giving me that look again “Desmond… It would be best if we don’t mention him around Brenda, okay?”

“Why? Is there something I’m not aware of?” Apparently Luke hadn’t told her about what happened in Mysthallery yet.

“Well, let’s just say that she has reasons to not want to hear about him… ever” I was going to explain the whole situation to her when we had more time, of course. After some minutes Brenda came back to the living room, this time with some cups of tea on a plate.

“I hope you enjoy it, I made it with my extra special secret ingredient” She took a sip from her cup before taking a long look at Flora “You have grown up so much since the last time I saw you... And you look so beautiful, too!”

“It has only been one year. I don’t think I have grown so much, but thank you!”

“This place looks great, Brenda. I see that you are all settled in already. This place certainly is bigger than your old house in Mysthallery, too. Though I have to ask: Is Doland still working for you?”

“Oh, no… not anymore. We ended his services after we moved. His family lives in London, after all, we couldn’t make him leave them behind”

“And why didn’t you get a new butler, then?” Brenda tensed at that question.

“Well… looking back, we didn’t really need to have a butler at the old house in the first place. When we moved we decided we could manage without one… But I have to admit that I miss him sometimes” There was an awkward silence. I have to admit that maybe I should had explained the situation to Flora, if only to avoid to bring up this conversation.

“Huh… Where is Luke? And what about Mister Triton?” I had been wondering that as well. I supposed that Clark would be busy at work, but it surely was strange to see that Luke wasn’t at the house.

“Clark is at work right now, and Luke went out with some friends. He should be back before dawn, because If not he will be in a lot of trouble”

“So he already made some friends here. Those are really good news.” She tried to sound happy, yet I couldn’t help but notice a sad tone in her voice.

“Oh yes, they are. For a long time I was afraid he was going to have a hard time adapting, you know? But it seems that things went smoothly” We continued talking and enjoying our tea for about half an hour. I would have loved to stay more time just chatting with Brenda and Flora, but there were more important things at hand.

“Brenda, it has been a lovely chat, but I think it’s better if I go now. I… have some important matters to attend to. I will come back in a couple of hours, please stay with Flora until then”

“Some important matters?” Thankfully she didn’t press on “Alright, just try to not come back too late”

“But professor, I… I want to go with you!” This is a routine I know too well, and since I already know how it is going to end there is no need to prolong it any further.

“Well, if you don’t need to rest from the flight… then I could use some company. Shall we go?” We smiled at each other, her eyes full with excitement.

“Sure! See you, Ms. Triton! We won’t be late!”

“Have fun with your important matters!” I heard Brenda exclaim before closing the door behind us.

“So… where are we going, exactly?”

“The first step should be visiting professor Sycamore at the detention center, but from what I can remember visiting hours start at 8:00 am... So for now the best we can do is find him a lawyer” 

“Well, we have two hours then. I bet we can find a lawyer for him before that!” I wouldn’t be so sure. After all, was there really anyone who would want to take Jean Descole’s case? His reputation isn’t the best, and all the news claim that there is no way to prove his innocence. Of course, I already had someone in mind for the job, but there was still the possibility that he wouldn’t be willing to take the case.

“Yes, I hope so” It was the only thing I could say.

“You hope? So you aren’t sure if someone will want to take his case?”

“With that man, there is no way to be sure about anything. If his reputation as Jean Descole doesn’t scare any lawyer that might be interested on defending him off, the fact that he is accused of killing the Prime Minister of London will. He is not like Don Paolo, Flora. There are a lot of people that have many reasons to distrust him”

“Does that… include you? Are you angry at him? When they called you to attend his first trial you looked angry…”

“That’s not… That is in the past. I don’t hold any ill will against him” Or that was what I told myself. 

“Oh… I see how it is now. You… you are not sure how to feel about him, right?” I could only nod at that, while using my hat to cover my eyes “I can see that you care a lot about him, that is why you are so worried… and why you insisted to take the first flight that was available… Yet there are some things he has done that you can’t forget. Things that you don’t want to tell me… You don’t have to: just wait until you are ready, okay? For now let’s find a lawyer for him, alright?” Flora is such a smart girl, maybe I could learn a few things from her.

“Yes, you are right” I put my hat back into place “And Flora, dear… Thank you”

“You don’t have to thank me, professor” Our relationship has improved a lot through this past year, indeed. We both have missed Luke a lot, but I have to admit that the alone time helped us know each other better.

We walked through the streets for quite some time, observing our surroundings and discovering the city. It was the first time Flora visited Los Angeles, and it was obvious: she looked really excited.

“This is so different from London. Everything looks so… modern”

“The buildings in the city are certainly newer than the ones back at home”

“Do you think Luke misses it? I mean, living back at London with us… It has been such a long time, and he already made new friends here and everything… I doubt he would forget about you but, what if he forgot about me?”

“I’m sure he didn’t forget about you, dear. No matter how many new friends he might have, that won’t change the fact that you are very special for him. You both share a lot of memories together, after all. And besides, who would forget such a lovely lady?”

“Are you trying to make me cry, professor?” I could see she was wiping away some tears from her eyes “But I guess you are right. I shouldn’t be afraid just because Luke has new friends. And hey, maybe I can meet them and become friends with them too, right?”

“Now that is a lot better, my dear” I smiled at her, proud. The more time passes, the more I’m starting to feel like if I was her father. Well, I am in some ways.  

“By the way, professor: who do you have in mind for professor Sycamore’s defense?”

“If anyone can prove his innocence, it is the man who brought the dark age of the law to an end himself: Phoenix Wright”


	8. Hang in there!

“So you didn’t get to investigate the case”

“Look, I’m sorry for leaving you alone with Sissel. Looking back I shouldn’t have done that… But I was so excited about being able to help Jowd on an important case and-“

“It’s alright. I’m sorry you didn’t get to investigate last night. But don’t worry; I’m sure you will get an important case sooner than later”

“Thank you, Liam… I’m just tired of being the little kid trying to play detective, you know? Everyone else is out there doing important things and… leaving me behind. I mean, just look at yourself: Your idea of using animal therapy to rehabilitate criminals in prison was just a graduation thesis when you first came up with it, and now it’s a complete success. You are traveling all over the place helping people and implementing your ideas. I wish I could do something like that myself”

“But Lynne, that took me years of work and effort. Your career has only just started. You have only been a detective for a year after all. Don’t be so harsh on yourself just because you can’t complete your goals right away, there will be more than enough time for that” Liam always knew what to say to cheer me up.

“I’m sorry for ranting on you… I guess I just have to be more patient” I laugh. I looked around Liam's office, taking notice of all the animal-themed decorations.  “You know, I really like how you decorated this place. Everything is so… purple”

“You say the same thing every time you come in here”

“And I mean it every single time. Are you sure I don’t bother you with my visits? I bet you have a lot of cute little animal friends to take care of”

“I don’t mind, it has been a slow day either way. I guess none of my patients expected me to come back before January… It doesn't hurt to come to work anyways, no one knows when someone new will come through that door” He looked at the main door in silence for some moments, before realizing that no one was going to come in. “...Not any time soon it seems”     

“Don’t you have a shift at the prison today too?”

“Uh, why do you ask?” From the tone of his voice I can tell that I was right.

“Because you promised something to me yesterday, don’t you remember? You promised me you would meet with prosecutor Blackquill today”

“Well, that is true… But I don’t even know where-“

“He is at the high prosecutor’s office! I talked with Jowd this morning over the phone and he told me he saw him there. It’s near the prison so it shouldn’t take much of your time. The chief prosecutor is showing him his brand new office. I think he might need a secretary, now that I think of it. Maybe you could-”

“W-what are you implying? I am not going to become his secretary. I already have a job!”

“Then I hope you don’t mind if someone else gets it”

“Oh no, he is going to get a hot new secretary, I have to go and declare my eternal love for him immediately before he falls completely in love with them” He pretended to cry with fake desperation. He didn’t buy my little lie at all “Come on, did you really think that I was going to fall for that? Why do you want us to meet so badly anyways? You have to get a hobby or something” My small tease only managed to get Liam grumpy.

“And you have to get some guts! The only reason you haven’t even called him is because you are a chicken” No time to back down now.

“Oh I can call him whenever I want. I just want to wait for the right moment” I started to imitate a chicken, mocking him “Oh please, Lynne, you are acting like a little kid” Maybe, but I have no plans of stopping! “…Lynne” Chicken chicken chicken chicken “Oh alright, I will go if it means you will stop doing that”

“Victory! Victory!”

The rest of the morning went by slowly, and as expected no new clients arrived. When it was obvious that there was no point in staying at the clinic any longer Liam closed his office and we both headed towards the prosecutor’s office.

“Look, I know you only want to help Lynne but… you don’t have to, really. He is only an old friend. He has gone through so much... I just want to be there for him, you know? To support him. There is no need to make things so... awkward”

“Awkward? That’s what is worrying you so much?” Haven’t I told him enough that not everything has to be so complicated? “If he is just an old friend, then why are you so hesitant? Are you sure that there is nothing more?”

“No! I-I mean, yes! I… I don’t know! I don’t know why I’m making things so difficult. At this moment everything seems so complicated, and I don’t know what any of my feelings mean. I never wanted to make a big deal over this, but you are. We are not teenagers anymore, and this is not some sort of high school drama, Lynne. And honestly after everything that happened at the UR-1 retrial we should be taking this more seriously. I don’t want to go in there, make a big scene and… annoy him” He looked down. I couldn't help but feel ashamed of myself after screwing it up like that, avoiding his gaze. It was time to apologize.  

“I’m…  I’m sorry for making a big deal out of it, Liam. But I assure you that, no matter what you decide to do, you are not going to annoy anyone. Just… forget everything I have said up until this point. Just go in there and say hi to your friend. I’m sure he will be happy to see you” I tried to reassure him the best I could, and from the look Liam gave me I knew that was the only thing I had to do all along.

“Yeah, you are right. Maybe it won’t be so bad… Well, we are already here. There goes nothing” I gave him a thumbs up before he entered the building. I hide behind a statue as I saw him bump into a tall man at the door: It was prosecutor Blackquill himself. Talk about good timing. I’m not usually the type to spy other people’s conversations, but I thought it would be a good idea to keep a close eye on them just in case Liam needed a backup plan. Nothing like interrupting a reunion to save your friend from an awkward situation, am I right?

 “Ah! I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to- eh… Hi!” Hang in there, Liam. He looks even shorter than usually standing right in front of such a tall man. He had to look up just to make eye contact with him. They looked at each other for some moments, before Liam brought his gaze down to the floor, at a loss for words.  

“… I thought I wouldn’t see you until January”

“Oh, well there were some changes in the plans. Turns out that Lynne really wanted to spend the holidays with Jowd and his family. She felt really homesick, and she wore such a nostalgic expression on her face that it was impossible to say no to her” So now it’s my fault that our vacation came to a halt, huh? “Its… it’s good to see you again. You… you really are free now, huh?”

“Didn’t you get the news? Well, you certainly don’t seem surprised to see me. What brings you to the prosecutor’s office? Where you… looking for me by any chance?” Oooh, caught.

“Ah… well I did get the news, but only after I had already arrived to Los Angeles" Liar "If I had known before I would have arrived earlier. I-I mean, it’s not like I was desperate or anything, but” I could barely make sense of what he was saying because of how fast he talked. Oh no, I got lost in the conversation “-and I have been really busy at the clinic and I didn’t wanted to make a big deal out of it, but now I realize that it IS a big deal. I mean you just got proved innocent and released out of jail and I-”

“Slow down”

“I-I… I’m really happy to see that you are free. I feel bad I was unable to arrive sooner, because I-I really wanted to see you!" He took a deep breath "... I knew that there was no way that you were a… I’m sorry. I don’t know what else to say. I’m just really glad that you are okay...”         

“I don’t think you need to say anything else... It’s also good to see you, Liam. There is something different in you though. Tell me: have you gotten any taller since last time I saw you?” He smirked, teasingly. This guy gets it!   

“H-Hey! Don’t pick on me y-you big, tall meanie!” Is that really the best insult you have?

“Oh no, now I am a ‘meanie’. Whatever shall I do? Well, nothing to do about it” He laughed, sarcastically “The clock is ticking, doctor Anderson. Don’t you have work to do at the prison right now? Arriving late to work won't do any good to your salary”  

“Ah! I almost forgot about that!”

“It’s okay: We have enough time to get there” Don’t just stand there, Liam. It means he wants to accompany you to work! Ugh “Hurry up, I won't wait for you if you can't catch up. Meanwhile, tell me: how was Margarita Isle?” 

“Oh, yes! Of course! Well… It was pretty good. I think you would love it there. Getting some sun wouldn’t do you bad at all. Maybe if you spent a few days in there you wouldn't look so much like a vampire” They both left the building and it seems Liam completely forgot about me. I guess I deserved it after I left him alone last night. It was good to see that things went well with his weird goth prince, but what am I supposed to do know? Just after I thought of that, I got a call from Inspector Cabanela.


	9. Talking with ghosts

For some moments all I could see was an endless deep sea of red. I didn’t know who I was, what had happened and much less where I was supposed to be. The last thing I could remember was a sharp pain all over my body, as if I had been crushed by something heavy. At that moment I could have very well been dead. There was nothing. It was just me and my thoughts to keep me company in the limbo. I could hear a familiar voice in the distance, but I was unable to make sense of whatever it was saying. I thought I would be trapped there forever, and then I woke up.

“CLAY!” I screamed without thinking. I couldn’t believe it. There was no way… How could it even be possible?

“Apollo! Please calm down! Gosh, that really was a close one. We were almost squeezed like grapes by that giant chicken and then you passed out and… and I guess there is no crime scene anymore, and Yomiel’s trial is in a few hours and- Hey, are you even listening to me?!”

“Athena, I saw him! I saw Clay!” She looked at me like if I was crazy “Don’t give me that look. I swear I saw him. It was so strange. I was in some sort of limbo, I thought I had died and then-“

“A near death experience! Oh Apollo, thank god you are still alive. Please tell me: What is of our poor souls after we abandon our mortal coffins?”

“He only passed out, Sissel. It was just a dream. There is no need to get so melodramatic” 

“No, it was not! I mean, we did almost die but… But I’m sure it was not a dream! Athena, you have to believe me!”

“Apollo, Clay is- … Look, whatever it was we can talk about it later. Right now Yomiel and Sissel need us. The crime scene is completely destroyed, we don’t have any leads and the trial is today. What are we going to do?” I turned around and saw that the owner and main chef of the restaurant was crying at one of the benches of the street, and I can’t help but feel bad for the man. I guess there really were more important matters at hand.

“Yes, you are right Athena. Maybe we should head back towards the office and collect our thoughts. Ugh… don’t tell me I spent the entire night passed out on a bench” That can’t be good for my back. “Where is Inspector Cabanela?”

“He left to meet with the prosecutor assigned to the case. Miss Cykes was really worried about you, so I don’t think she noticed”

“H-hey! No need to say it like that” Hm, so she does care “Wait, Sissel, who is the prosecutor assigned?”

“Hmmm, give me a moment. I think he was called Daniel uh… something” That didn’t tell me a lot. Athena, on the other hand...

“Daniel Begnoche?!” She jumped at that name. She has heard of him, and from the tone of her voice I deduced that this Daniel being the prosecutor wasn't good news. “He is one of the most famous prosecutors of England- No, of all of Europe! What is he even doing here?” Of course he was. Why did I even expect an easy case against one of the Payne brothers?

“Oh no, then It is really hopeless… I’m never going to be able to marry my dear Yomiel…” Sissel was at the verge of tears.

“Maybe his involvement has something to do with the victim… Inspector Cabanela told us that there was a chance that she was a dangerous criminal searched by the Interpol, after all. And prosecutor Begnoche is known for working and collaborating with the Interpol! He and Interpol Agent Lestrange are the reason why the Targent organization is almost completely disbanded” I had no idea what she was talking about. “Come on, Apollo; don’t tell me you haven’t done your homework”

“You were the one who spent years studying in Europe, not me”

“That is no excuse! How can you not know about them? They are so… incredible! The best of the best!”

“Athena, stop your fangirling please. You are going to make Sissel cry again” What a headache.

“Ah! Sorry! It doesn’t matter how good they are, though. They have no chance against the Wright Anything Agency! They are not even that good anyways, right Apollo? And if Yomiel is really innocent then there is nothing to worry about, we just have to prove that in court!”

“What if… Yomiel is not innocent?” As soon as those words left her mouth we were left speechless.

“Sissel, what is that even supposed to mean? Don’t you… believe in your fiancé?” Athena was the one doing all the talking. I had no idea what to say, and the sharp pain on my head didn’t help at all.

“… You are right. That’s so silly of me. How could I even… think of that? Oh Yomiel, I am so sorry” At that moment I remembered what Inspector Cabanela told us before: This was not the first time Yomiel had been arrested. In fact, he had been just recently released out of jail. Does Sissel doubt him because of that? I had to question her about it, but later. She was too stressed; she needed to have some time to calm down. I decided I would get the answers from Yomiel himself. When we arrived at the office we were surprised to only find Mister Wright in it.

“Oh, you are back already. I thought you would never show up. You didn’t even bother to tell me that you wouldn’t come back. Pearl and Trucy left to play with some friends and I was left completely alone this entire morning, wondering just where you were supposed to be” Was it me or the boss had been worried about us?

“A giant décor roasted chicken almost fell on top of us!” Don’t say it like that; you are going to make him gray even more.

“… I am not going to ask. Uh, is Sissel okay?”

“Don’t worry about me, Mister Wright. I just need some minutes… or maybe a couple of hours. Could I just… sit down here, please? Thank you” She made herself home and, almost immediately, fell asleep on the sofa. She didn’t get any rest last night, after all.

“This has been really hard on her, boss. We barely know anything about the case and we don’t know what to do: The crime scene is no more, we haven’t talked to anyone related to the case apart from Inspector Cabanela, we don’t know who the victim is apart from the fact that she might be a dangerous criminal from some foreign organization, the prosecutor is Daniel Begnoche himself and as if that wasn’t enough we discovered that Yomiel has been on Jail before and now even his own fiancée is doubting him” I think the headache is coming back.

“Well, from what you are telling me you already know quite a lot about the case then” 

 “Yes, we know that all the odds are against us. Thank you very much” Athena sighed.

“It certainly doesn’t look good… But that is no reason to give up, Athena. Just look at her” He pointed at Sissel “That woman needs you. No matter how afraid you might be, you have to hold on. Your client depends on it”

“I know, I know: A lawyer always has to believe in their client and the only time a lawyer can cry is when it’s all over. I have heard enough of that, and I’m starting to think that the case is not the problem, but me… I haven’t been feeling like myself since the UR-1 retrial, maybe I’m not ready to go back to a courtroom after all. What if I freeze up again? I can’t do this alone” I had no idea she was hiding all of this. Now I feel like an idiot. I should have been there for her more. What kind of friend am I supposed to be?

“Athena, you are not going to freeze up again. Maybe you can’t see it right now, but you are way stronger than you think. And if anything happens, we will back you up. You are not alone, and you will have Apollo by your side no matter what…” He was staring at me now “You have been really quiet since you arrived. What’s the matter? Do you need to vent out too?”

“Apollo had a near death experience and is worried he might be starting to communicate with dead people”

“HE WHAT?!” I was about to explain myself when a female voice interrupted us from behind.

“Did I hear that right? Did someone say ‘communicate with dead people’?” There was no way… when did she even arrive? Athena and Mister Wright were as surprised as me, it seems. I turned around towards the door to see…

“M-Maya?!”


	10. Nonsense

“Oh professor Sycamore, when are you going to stop getting into trouble?” I had no time for this. “Hmmm, you are not the talkative type, are you? Ah, this brings so many memories. I remember it as if it was yesterday-“

“Sorry to interrupt your train of thought, but I am not in the mood” What was agent Lestrange doing here anyways?

“I see you haven’t changed at all. There is no need to be so shy with me. We are like old friends at this point, aren’t we?” I really had no time for this “Well, we meet a few years ago, but for some reason I can’t help but feel as if we had known each other for a very long time”

“You don’t know anything about me”

“Of course I do. I have a full profile on you already: You are Professor Desmond Sycamore. Separated from your birth family when you were just a little kid, you found a home with Miss Sycamore, your-“

“Guardian” Because my mother is long dead.

“Your guardian, right. You gave your name to your little brother, hoping he would be safe and sound with a new family, yet you were left completely alone until Miss Sycamore adopted you. Then you would spend most of your life with her and the Abadie family, studying archeology in hopes of discovering the Azran Civilization before Targent and your father did. Of course, most of this information is not known by the general public”

“You have certainly done your homework” Of course the Interpol already knows my entire life, well, almost.

“Then there is the part everyone has been wondering about. Three names: Vanessa, Soleil and A-“

“I think that is enough”

“You are pretty secretive when it comes to them, aren’t you? There are some… nasty rumors going around because of that” As if I didn’t already know.

“I do not care about rumors. Why are there even rumors about me? I’m just an archeologist. That is the most boring profession I could ever think of. Why is everyone so interested in my personal life? Am I some sort of celebrity to everyone?"

“I don’t think they are interested in Desmond Sycamore’s personal life, but Jean Descole’s. They are interested in your motives: What, exactly, drove you to such lengths? What are you passionate about? And what was so special about that mysterious woman that made you so determined to avenge her death?"

“All of that is completely meaningless. I am not Jean Descole. I’m not Desmond Sycamore, either. I’m just a dead man walking. Don’t waste your efforts on me, just send me to the electric chair and get done with it already” I am done with this conversation.

“Yeah… that’s the same thing you said the first time you were put on trial. Do you want me to call Fede? I think talking with him might help you”

“Ugh… I don’t need to talk with Fede” Who does this woman think she is? My mother?

“He is really worried about you, you know?”

“He is worried about his paycheck, Bella. Why would he be worried about someone like me? He doesn’t care”

“Just because he didn’t agree to go on a date with you doesn’t mean that he doesn’t care” Someone always has to bring that up. The foolish professor Sycamore, so desperate for attention and so mentally fragile, that he dared to ask his hot psychologist out on a date like if he had any chances in the first place. In my defense I was drunk.

“Ugh”

“You are his patient, what were you expecting?”

“I don’t even need to go to a psychologist in the first place. I am perfectly okay, can’t you see?” Of course she doesn’t buy it “There is nothing to save here. I’m just an inherently terrible person, and there is nothing Fede can do about that”

“You remind me of someone I know” She whispered to herself, it was barely audible “Things aren’t as bad as you make them see, you know?”

“What the hell do you mean by that? My entire life has been a complete disaster ever since the moment Targent appeared to ruin everything, I have done so many terrible, horrible things and now I have been accused of murdering the Prime Minister of London, everyone thinks I’m guilty and there are hundreds of people out there waiting for my guilty verdict so that I finally get executed and I have no idea who is even going to defend me”

“Desmond, there are a lot of people out there that care about you and that believe in your innocence, like me and Fede” Why do you even care? “Your butler… how was he called? Ah, Raymond, he and Martha are really worried about you. ” That is true, they sure would be way better if I didn’t exist “and even if Daniel disapproves of your actions as Jean Descole, I’m sure that deep down he still cares about you” What a fucking joke “And you know what I heard? That your brother is already here in LA, looking for an attorney” Ugh “And I am sure that the Abadie family is coming to see you, too” Perfect, just what I needed.

“Are you done?”

“Well… I’m sure that, wherever he is right now, Adrien probably already got the news, and I’m sure that he must be really worried about you too”

“He is not coming back! Ever! Damn, do you ever shut up?!” Then I realized that that last part was a little excessive. “I-I…”

“No, it’s okay. It’s my bad; I shouldn’t have mentioned him…” Perfect, just perfect. Someone is genuinely trying to make you feel better and you completely ruin it. Well, what else are you good for anyways? “I shouldn’t have said that things weren’t that bad… They are. This entire situation is completely messed up, and I’m sorry. But please, have a little more faith; this is not going to last forever. In fact, I would dare to say that sooner than later everything will get better. Times are changing, something big is about to happen… I can feel it in the air, somehow. Is it the same for you?”

“I don’t feel anything at all”

“Maybe you just have to pay more attention to your surroundings.”

“There is nothing in the air. I don’t believe in those things. You are just happy because the dark age of the law was brought to an end”

“It hasn’t ended, not yet… But what happened last week is a pretty good start, don’t you think? I don’t know, I like to expect the best out of every situation” You are an Interpol agent, aren’t you supposed to be more realistic?

“Maybe? I don’t really care about that. Lately I don’t care about anything at all”

“I’m sure that you do care, you just haven’t realized yet… or maybe you don’t want to admit it. You just have to give it time. I don’t know if you can tell, but you have already improved a lot” Now that is a good joke.

“Why are you so sure about that?”

“Because you have finally opened up to me” Oh.

“I-I… you are just getting the wrong idea. I was bored and had nothing better to do than talk nonsense with you, that’s all” The last thing i needed was someone else trying to analyze my behavior. With Doctor Federico Garcia is more than enough.

“Well, feel free to talk nonsense with me anytime you want… You know, as long as you don’t get drunk and start asking me out on dates. You know that I don’t like men that way” Stop rubbing the Fede incident over my face please.

“Then you are in luck, because I don’t-" There was no point in arguing with her “…just stop bringing that up, okay?!" She laughed at my misery.

“Fine, fine. I won’t tease you with that anymore. I’m going to get something to eat, do you want anything?”

“To be released from my corporeal prison, thanks”

“This is going to be a really long day. Oh, also: I really like the long hair, it really suits you” But of course it does.


	11. Ghost Tricks

“Please tell me more about yourself”

“Oh, sure! Where should I start?” The young man kept silent for some moments “I am Clay Terran, and I’m an astronaut!” I was already aware of that, though “Well, I used to be an astronaut… before I... P-please give me a moment!” He was about to cry, again. It was to be expected. He died so young after all. I would be worried if he had reacted any other way. “I’m so sorry. I know I can’t let this stop me but…”

“Let it out, Clay, there is nothing wrong with showing how you feel”

“Was it like this for you too, Sissel? Realizing… that you were dead?” That was a really long time ago. Eleven years ago to be exact.

“When I realized I was dead I didn’t even remember who I was. It’s a very long story... The point is: When I had finally discovered who I was I was already used to being dead. I can't really say that I understand how you feel at this very moment. Yet I know that it must be difficult to process”

“At least… at least I have you with me, Sissel. But I have to admit that I’m very surprised to see that, after becoming a ghost, the only being that can communicate with me is a cat”

“And I am very surprised to find someone that has obtained ghost tricks after so many years. Could you please tell me more about that?”

“I-I don’t know much about that ghost trick stuff. I was actually hoping you could tell me more about it”

“No, no. I meant about the moment in which you got them: The moment you died. You don’t have to tell me right now if you are not ready, though, I can wait until you feel better”

“No, it’s okay! I understand that you need to know, just give me some moments, please? I’m sure that I can do it!” He took a deep breath. He died very recently, so he is still so used to needing to breathe that he tries to even if it’s not possible for him to do so “I was about to complete my lifelong dream: To visit space… Oh no, I’m making myself sad again!”

“It’s okay, take your time”

“Okay… I’m not going to get too technical with you, but in short everything went… terribly bad. Someone had planted a bomb in the rocket. It went off and there was a big explosion in the launching pad, and Mister Starbuck had passed out. I had to carry him all the way back to the main building, but the spy that had planted the bomb was waiting for us there. Well, at that moment I didn’t know it was a spy, I thought it was that weird detective that the boss hired to- Ah, maybe I should get to the point. He wanted the hope capsule I was carrying, but since I didn’t give it to him he… lets say that he didn’t take it very good. And that is the story of how I got stabbed over some stupid moon rock” There was it. That’s what exactly what I needed to know.

“Was there a rock from space in the hope capsule? What happened to it?”

“That story is even longer than the one I just told you… In resume it ended as evidence in the case of, well, my murder. But the spy was so desperate to destroy it that he activated another bomb in the middle of the trial just to get rid of it because it had a bloodstain from seven years ago that could potentially reveal his identity if it was found? I think those are the basics. In short the rock blew up along with the entire courtroom, so I think you don’t have to worry about it anymore”

“Incredible… Just incredible”  

“Oh Clay, how did you get yourself into that entire mess? Maybe if I had given him his dumb rock I would still be alive. I promised to protect it with my life because it was sooo important for the future of space travel, but at the end it was all in vain because they managed to destroy it anyways!” He laughed with tears in his eyes.      

“I’m going to apologize in advance for what I am going to say: That rock is better off destroyed. I know you had good intentions, but if that rock had ended up in the wrong hands then-“

“What is so important about it? Apart from it being from space”

“That rock is the reason as to why you have ghost trick powers” The young man went silent for some seconds after hearing that.

“Ah, why does everything have to be so complicated? What are ghost tricks anyways?”

“I don’t know how to explain it but… In short, if someone dies near the radiation of the rock, their spirits are unable to move on to the afterlife. Instead, they get ghost tricks. These tricks vary from person to person, and they are able to change over time. They can become stronger or weaker or change completely, but they are very unpredictable. Some of these tricks are: Being able to possess cores, or basically objects, that are near your range; turn on or off electronics, opening or closing doors, the typical ghost behavior you might see in movies; the ability to travel through telephonic lines, don’t laugh, it’s as strange as it sounds; and probably the most important ones: The ability to control any form of life and the ability to go back in time four minutes before someone’s death and erase it”

“Oh, I did that already! Just some moments ago!”

That was something I didn’t expect to hear. Just some moments ago someone died, and Clay was able to save them. But how? Just what happened while I was gone? “Please explain yourself”

“Well, at the moment I had no idea what had happened but… Maybe I should start from the beginning?”

I gently nodded “Please do so”

“Well, after I died and realized I was a ghost, I started to follow my best friend, Apollo, around. I wasn’t used to being a ghost, so I stayed possessing his bracelet this entire time. He is a lawyer, and he came to this weird chicken themed restaurant to investigate a case” That place sure brings many memories “He was asking that tall Inspector in the white lab coat about the case-” Inspector Cabanela, the man I have been trying to follow this entire time “-when suddenly: Bam! A giant roasted chicken fell from the ceiling!” That is oddly familiar “Everyone started running away, but… but Apollo wasn’t fast enough”

“Clay…”  

“I saw my best friend die right in front of me… I didn’t know what to do. I screamed: “Someone, please, do something! He can’t be dead! There has to be a way to save him! There has to be something I can do” and then… it was as if I had traveled back in time. When I saw that the chicken was falling again I… I didn’t think, I just knew that I had to save my best friend so… somehow I was able to push him out of the way. He passed out, but he was alive! I couldn’t believe it; I had been able to save him…”

“Yes, you did. You managed to save a life without anyone guiding you, and that my friend is very impressive. I’m sorry that you had to see that, though” He whipped his tears from his eyes and smiled at me.

“At that moment I thought it was just a premonition, but now I realize that it was not. It was thanks to the moon rock that I was able to save my best friend’s life… And after that you arrived! But I have to wonder, what are you doing here? Where is your… owner? Or are you a stray?”

“I do have an owner, but that doesn’t mean I’m unable to go wherever I want. I was following Inspector Cabanela around; he is an old friend of mine” If only I had arrived in time “I failed…”

“Why? What do you mean?” Clay was clearly confused.

“I promised to use my ghost tricks to protect those who are dear to me, but today was unable to… When I finally catched up to Inspector Cabanela it was already too late, and thanks to that these people almost died tonight. You had to see your friend die because of my incompetence, and for that I have to apologize”

“Hey, you don’t have to apologize to me. You are just one cat: you can’t save every single person that needs your help on your own. It’s a task too big for only one ghost” He was too kind, yet I was still disappointed of myself. “You don’t have to do everything alone, yet you are glad that the moon rock got destroyed. Why? If I was able to save a life without knowing anything about these ghost tricks, imagine all the things humanity could do if we put more research into it! All the people we could save!” I should have seen that one coming.

“Clay, the space rock is too powerful. It manipulates time, space, life and death in ways that no one could have ever imagined. Humanity is not prepared for it”

“So are you telling me that my best friend should have stayed dead?”

“No, of course I’m not saying that. I would be a hypocrite if I told you that because… I have also used the powers of the dead to protect the people I love. Maybe we have good intentions, but not everyone out there is like that. You are right that it could help a lot of people, but at the same time is best if we keep the existence of ghost tricks as a secret between us… for now”

“Until humanity is ready for it, you mean?” I nodded “Alright, I will keep the secret”

“I am glad that you understand”

“Just another question: Why do you call it a space rock if it’s from the moon? A-and why do you have a body?”

“I am sure that it is not from the moon. It’s from a meteorite rain. A big one fell and crashed towards the earth eleven years ago. It’s highly probable that some crashed against the moon, too… The meteorite is the reason why I died. A shard of it hit me and got stuck to my body. Thanks to it, my body is neither dead nor alive, it can’t be harmed by anything and it is unable to age. I am still dead, but I am able to control my old body as if it was a shell… The negative side effect is that like this I am unable to travel through time” And that is why I worry so much about the safety of those who are dear to me: If something bad happened to them while I was away I wouldn’t be able to change it… But Clay would.

“That’s why you follow them around all the time, right? To keep them away from danger… You are such a good cat, Sissel” We spent some minutes in silence, before Clay started to speak again “How should we call it? It’s strange to just call it a space rock or a meteorite. Let’s give it a name!”

“… Onitsed will do for now”


	12. A request

“It’s good to see that you have taken good care of Charley while I was away, Nick. Wow, this place is a mess. Are you sure that this is still an office?”

“At least that is what it is supposed to be” Yet the more time passes the more it begins to feel like a circus.

“Oh, and these two must be the famous Apollo Justice and Athena Cykes you talk so much about” I could see Athena blush at that comment.

“Famous? Oh boss, do you really talk so much about us with Miss Fey?” She giggled while playing with her long side ponytail.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Miss Fey” Apollo said while shaking Maya's hand.

“There is no need to be so formal, just Maya is fine. I do wonder: who is she?” She finally noticed the exhausted woman that was sleeping on the couch.

“That is Sissel. She is the fiancée of one of our clients. We had a pretty crazy day and needed to take some time to rest. Just don’t mind her” Athena, you can’t dismiss your clients like that.

“I could use some rest, too. You know, after I almost died”

“You spent the entire night sleeping on that bench! If anyone needs to sleep it’s me!”

Maya started to laugh besides me “Oh my, you sure are from the lively bunch. Is it true? Did you almost die today?”

“I giant décor chicken almost crushes him!” Apollo’s face screamed that he didn’t want to be remembered by that “I think the experience was too hard on him”

Apollo already had enough “Please stop implying that there is something wrong with my head. And if there was, so what? Aren’t you supposed to be a psychologist? Because you are not taking this very seriously”

“Well…” She sighed “You are right, I’m taking the joke too far, I’m sorry. But you do have to admit that the situation is pretty bizarre… I’m glad that giant chicken didn’t kill you”

Apollo started to laugh at this “I don’t get paid enough for this, do I? Well, that’s just another normal day in the Wright Anything Agency for you” I start to worry, is it normal that he is taking it so well? And from the look of Maya’s face, she was ready to join in the fun.

“It’s good to see that you are starting to feel better, A-pollo” That was terrible.

“Isn’t it too soon to start making puns about it? I won’t judge, though” As long as they are happy, then I am happy.

“Well, I don’t think you are hallucinating or anything, Apollo. But maybe what you saw was just a dream. If not then, how were you able to see Clay? Unless you truly had a near death experience” Doesn’t almost getting crushed already count as a near death experience?

“I don’t know what it was, but I am sure of what I saw… It felt too real to be a dream”

“Maybe he was protecting you! You know? Maybe your friend saved you from certain death!”

“Maya please shed some light on us. You are the expert on the spiritual world, after all” Maya Fey is currently studying to follow her mother’s footsteps and become the master of Kurain’s spirit channeling technique.  

“Usually spirits are unable to affect the living world. They tend to be trapped in the spiritual world until a medium calls them to channel them… If your friend- What was his name?”

“Clay Terran”

“Right! If Clay was able to affect the living world, that means that he somehow managed to get out of the spiritual world… or that for some reason he never got there in the first place. That would be so unprecedented!”

“Unless it was just a dream” Athena added. It seemed that Apollo’s story didn’t make any sense, as it didn’t even follow the rules of the spiritual world.

“There has to be a way to prove whether it was just a dream or not…” As much as I want to believe you, Apollo, I don’t think there is any way to prove that. Or was there? Just when I was about to suggest an idea Athena interrupted me.

“Ah! Talking about proving things, visiting hours will open in fifteen minutes! Apollo, Sissel, we have to go! Our client is waiting for us! We have to prepare our case and prove his innocence!” She then proceeded to wake Sissel up.

“Ah, I’m awake! Did something happen? Oh my, look at the time!”

“Apollo, move! It was good to meet you Maya. We can keep talking about this later!” And with that they were gone: Apollo with a grunt, Sissel still half asleep and Athena trying to hurry them up.  

“Like I said, they sure are the lively bunch. These holidays are going to be filled with lots of fun, I’m sure. I’m glad I was able to arrive in time” No more than me, Maya.

“I was about to suggest: Can't you channel Clay so we can ask him ourselves what happened? Even if everything turns out to be one of Apollo’s dreams, I’m sure that talking to his friend will be good for him… you know, so he is able to say goodbye to him” Maya gently nodded at my idea. Just as she was about to reply there was a knock on the door.

“I’ll open! Maybe Pearl and Trucy came back” I doubt so. Trucy doesn’t tend to knock the door before entering. “Oh! Hello, welcome to the Wright Anything Agency, previously known as the Wright and Co. Law Offices and- Wow, that sure is a fancy hat. How can we help you?” Yet another client? That was a surprise. A man with a top hat was at the door, and besides him was a teenager girl in a pink dress.   

“Thank you, Miss. Let me present myself: My name is Hershel Layton, and I’m an archeology professor at Gressenheller University back at London, and this is Flora Reinhold my...”

“Daughter! It is very good to meet you! Ah, you have such pretty clothes; you Americans have such a unique fashion sense!”

“Flora, my dear, that is actually a-” He was cut off by Maya.

“Thank you, Flora! I also like your clothes! You are wearing such a lovely dress!” They instantly became friends. I guess Maya is better at socializing than me. “I’m Maya Fey, and the man in the blue suit is Phoenix Wright, but you can call him Nick for short. That’s his nick-name, after all” Oh no, she is already making puns.

I decided it was better to not press the matter. I had heard about Professor Hershel Layton from Edgeworth. Apparently he helped the Scotland Yard solve numerous difficult cases, and I can’t help but wonder what a man like him is doing at my office. “What can we help you with, Professor Layton?”

“I came here to request your services. I understand if you want to refuse: the circumstances truly aren’t the best ones, and we certainly are at a disadvantage, yet… A dear friend of mine has been arrested. He is accused of murder” So it was the usual.

“Professor Desmond Sycamore, have you heard of him?” Oh no, that wasn’t good news. Unfortunately Maya was the first one to reply.

“No matter who is it that needs our services, or how difficult the case might be, you can be sure of one thing: that we will prove their innocence no matter what. After all, you came exactly to the Wright place!” I haven’t agreed to any of this. Maya has no idea who the man in question is. She obviously doesn’t know anything about the case. It was already too late: Flora and the professor were already smiling at each other.

“See? I told you they would agree! You were worrying about nothing, professor” Oh no, I can’t bring myself to disappoint a little girl.

“Would you really be willing to take his case? I can’t thank you enough for this, Miss Fey and Mister Wright” He took off his hat and put it against his chest, smiling. Oh no, this was serious. I had to talk to Maya immediately. In private. “Visiting hours should be open already. Shall we go so you can meet with professor Sycamore?”

“Sure! Come on Nick, don’t just stand there, we have to get moving. I’m going to leave a note for Pearly and Trucy” Why didn’t I take the dumb Chicken Mansion case “Come on, we have to meet with our client, investigate the crime scene, talk to witnesses and the trial is- When is the trial?”

“Tomorrow”

“You already heard it, the trial is tomorrow. Let’s get moving!” We are so screwed.


	13. Abadie

When we arrived at Mister Wright’s office we had no idea what to expect. It took us almost two hours to find the place, only to find out that we weren’t supposed to be looking for the Wright and Co. Law offices anymore, but the Wright Anything Agency. Thankfully Miss Fey and Mister Wright had agreed to take professor Sycamore's case, yet I could notice that they were unaware of most of the details. We arrived shortly at the detention center, and were surprised to find out that we weren’t the only ones waiting to meet with Professor Sycamore. I saw some familiar faces from some years ago… I hadn’t seen the Abadie family, one of the richest families in all of Europe, since the professor’s first trial.

“Oh, professor Layton, thank god you are already here. Did you already find a lawyer for my poor little Desmond?” A tall, skinny woman with light purple hair put her arms around me, and embraced me before I could even say anything to her. If my memory didn’t fail me, this was Petunia Abadie. I am unaware of what her relationship with Professor Sycamore exactly is, but from what I have heard she has known him since he was just a kid. “I told Martha one million times that she should be the one taking her son’s case, but she has been acting really weird lately” She whispered to my ear, but someone had managed to hear her anyways.

“Petunia, you know that I am no longer working as a lawyer. I am sure that Mister Wright is the right person for the job. If anyone can prove Desmond’s innocence it is him. Nice to meet you, Mister Wright, I have only heard wonders about you since the UR-1 retrial” A pale woman with long black hair -I noticed that she had started to gray- said, offering her hand to the lawyer in the blue suit. “My name is Martha Sycamore; I’m Desmond’s legal guardian” The woman who had adopted him thirty years ago.

“Martha, how could you even think that I would doubt Mister Wright’s abilities? I have only heard good things about him as well. I am not worried about his skills as a lawyer, I am worried about you” From what I can remember, Martha was the one who took Desmond’s defense at his first trial. Yet this time she was reluctant to do so “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mister Wright. I’m Petunia Abadie. Desmond is… he is very important to me. To tell the truth, I am almost like a second mother to him”

“Oh, it is good to meet both of you” Mister Wright proceeded to shake both of their hands “Listen, I am really flattered, but I’m afraid to tell you that-.” He was immediately cut off by a short, fat man with white hair. He almost resembled Santa Claus, except for the lack of beard.

“So this is the famous Phoenix Wright! The name is Dangelo Abadie, the well known founder of the Abadie Brand. I can’t take you enough for taking Desmond’s case” Petunia’s husband. The man took out a pen and a checkbook from his coat’s pocket and started writing “Please tell me, how many zeroes?”

“How many-?! Wait, isn’t it a bit too early to talk about the pay? I mean, I’m not going to complain but-“

“Would six be enough?”

“S-six zeroes?! A-are you sure?” Mister Wright almost couldn’t believe it “Sir, excuse me, b-but I never-”

“Oh, what am I even thinking? Let’s make them seven, shall we?” Dangelo and his extremely generous paychecks hadn’t changed at all “Oh and we should get you a new suit too. Something more expensive and from our brand would look perfect on you… and just who is the young miss besides you?”

“I’m Maya Fey! I’m his assistant!” She was long ready to jump in the conversation. “Glad to meet you everyone!”

“My little darling just designed a beautiful dress that would look fabulous on you. Let me give Richard a call to order your new outfits”

“I think Maya would be happier with food, if I can be honest” He then realized that he had said that out loud “Ah! I’m so-“

“Oh no, the banquet will have to wait until after Desmond is proved innocent. We can’t celebrate without him after all” This time the one who spoke was a woman in her thirties, with long blonde twin tails and a black dress “I am Lulu, the current owner of the Abadie Brand” Dangelo and Petunia’s younger daughter “Now, talking about your dress: I hope you like the gothic Lolita style, that is my specialty after all. You would look absolutely beautiful in one of my designs… And of course I have to get something ready for you too, my dear” She was looking at Flora now, who had been really quiet ever since we arrived “Is she your daughter, professor?”

“Sort of. Her name is Flora Reinhold, and I have been taking care of her for some years now. It is good to see you again, Lulu. I see that you haven’t changed at all. I am surprised to find out that you already arrived, though. Weren’t you supposed to be in France?”

“We were, but as soon as we heard the news we took the first flight we could to Los Angeles” Replied Petunia, worried sick about Desmond “Right now Raymond and Alfendi are inside talking with Desmond, but after that you should be able to meet with him and-.”

“And plan how you are going to prove his innocence!” Lulu interrupted.

“Maybe we should slow down. Mister Wright hasn’t even started his investigation and you are all already thinking about celebrations” A tall, muscular man in a suit replied behind us. How could I forget about Roderick? He was Dangelo and Petunia’s oldest son “Roderick Abadie. It is good to meet you Miss Fey, Miss Reinhold and Mister Wright. And it is good to see you again, professor Layton” From what I can remember Roderick is a violinist at an orchestra.

“Well, if we are so eager to celebrate is because of how much faith we have in Mister Wright’s abilities as a lawyer. And of Desmond’s innocence, of course” Dangelo laughed, giving the man a pat on the back.

“About that, I-.” He was interrupted yet again by Martha.

“Mister Wright, I know that Desmond doesn’t have the best reputation and that he did some terrible unforgivable things as Jean Descole… But I can assure you that all of that is in the past. And I am absolutely sure that he is incapable of killing someone… I can’t thank you enough for taking his defense”

“Wait, professor Sycamore is Jean Desco-?!” Maya was completely unaware of that fact.

“Oh yes, I am absolutely sure about that Miss Sycamore, but I-.” Interrupted yet again. This time by Petunia, who seemed as if she was about to cry

“Mister Wright I already lost two of my kids. First my dear Lily on that accident, and shortly after that my dear Adrien… Please, I don’t want to lose Desmond too. I don’t know what I would do if anything happened to him” I had read about both of those incidents in the past. The Abadie family had already lost so much... After hearing that any doubt that was inside Mister Wright’s head completely disappeared.

“You don’t have to worry about that. It is true that these aren’t the best circumstances, and that proving professor Sycamore’s innocence won’t be an easy task… But if you all believe in him so much, then I will believe in him too. The Wright Anything Agency is officially on the case!”

“Yes! That’s the attitude, Nick! Jean Descole or not, professor Sycamore is safe in our capable hands”

“This is going to be great! Daniel Begnoche has no chance of winning!” Lulu was almost jumping of excitement along with Flora.

“Prosecutor Begnoche? I think I have heard of him from Edgeworth.”

“I don’t see why you are so surprised, Mister Wright” I decided to join in the conversation “We are talking about the death of the prime minister, and the crime happened at the embassy of all places. It is only natural that they would get an important British prosecutor on the case. I mean, the only reason why professor Sycamore’s trial isn’t on London is because… because they don’t want him to set foot on England ever again” It is not only the British who hold ill will against him though. The only reason he was allowed to complete his sentence on America was because the government was interested on his talents as an engineer.

“How dare them! Desmond is the kindest, sweetest person I have ever met. I mean he made some mistakes along the way, but he had good intentions! And besides all of that is supposed to be in the past! He is like a completely new person now” Just after Lulu was done talking Raymond appeared from the hallway accompanied by a purple haired kid who was about Luke’s age. It seemed that they were done talking with professor Sycamore.

“Oh, Raymond, how is he? How is Desmond?” Martha asked behind me.

“Well… He isn’t doing really well right now. The whole situation has been too harsh on him and-.”

“He says that you all should just forget about him and let him rot in hell already” The young kid interrupted. This was going to be a really long day indeed.


	14. Do I know you?

“And then that giant roasted chicken fell from the ceiling and almost crushed that poor red lawyer like a grape. We couldn’t do any more investigating after that. I am sorry though. I know you loved that restaurant, baaaby”

“I’m sure that they will manage to open again after everything calms down. It wouldn’t be the first time they pull it off” After Inspector Cabanela called me to meet him at the Detention Center because he had something to tell me I didn’t expect to hear a story like that “Tell me: Do those lawyers have any chance to win?”

“I doubt so. I am pretty confident on our case. And if that wasn’t enough they are just two rookies all alone against prosecutor Daniel Begnoche. I think we gooot them”

“I still can’t believe that you are working with the famous Daniel Begnoche! Are you sure that the victim could be a dangerous super spy or something like that?” That sounds so exciting! 

“We can’t say for sure but there is a high chance. Everyone is talking about the Prime Minister’s murder, but I think this case might be even more important. Jowd doesn’t know what he is missing out” Ah, I wish I could help Jowd or Cabanela with their cases. Just when am I going to be able to play with the big fishes? “I was planning to question the accused one last time. Do you want to accompany me? Playing the good cop/bad cop game might make him cooperate” Oh!

“Are you kidding me?! Of course I want to! Let’s go!”

When we arrived there was a man at the other side of the glass already waiting for us: White skin with long blonde hair, wearing a red suit and a pair of sunglasses covering his eyes. At first glance he didn’t seem very cooperative, yet the moment he noticed I had entered the room he seemed surprised to see me. I already know I’m just a rookie, but come on you don’t need to look at me like that. Rude.

“You are that little girl from the park, aren’t you? You have grown up so much” It hit me like a train: I know this man.

“I remember you. You are that weirdo from eleven years ago”

“The one and only. Believe me when I tell you that I was as surprised as you are right now” Inspector Cabanela knew about him too. “He just got released out of jail after all the trouble he caused us and now he managed to get himself arrested again. Did you miss your old little cell or something?”

Eleven years ago I was just a little kid playing in the park, minding her own business until suddenly a man with pointy blonde hair and a gun in his hand appeared out of nowhere. He had been accused of being a spy and revealing national secrets yet he desperately claimed that he was innocent. Inspector Cabanela was interrogating him, but he was so desperate to get information out of the man that the only thing he managed to do was terrify him so much that, when the chance presented itself, he decided to escape with the Inspector’s gun in his hands. He ran towards the local park while detective Jowd followed him. He saw me playing besides the Mino statue and decided to take me as a hostage.

“You saved my life” As wild as it sounds it was the truth. Just when I thought that things couldn’t get worse a meteorite crashed against the statue, making it fall over on top of us. The man pushed me out of the way, but as a consequence the statue fell on top of him and injured him. That’s when I meet Detective Jowd, who told me to run and call an ambulance. I was on my way back when I found someone hiding between the bushes: It was Sissel, my cat “No… not only that. You completely changed my life”

“I made a terrible mistake that is what I did. I have to apologize to you because of my actions of eleven years ago” I never expected to see him again… The worst is that I don’t even remember his name.

“And yet another terrible mistake brought you here again” Laughed Inspector Cabanela “Listen Yomiel: I know that you were proven to not be a spy, but the situation is not looking any good for you this time around. A woman that is nowhere to be found on Interpol’s database is on the hospital because of you”

“How many times do I have to tell you that I didn’t do it? It was the man in the black suit. He was the one who caused that mess at The Chicken’s Mansion, not me”

“Back at it again with your mysterious man in black. There is no proof that this person even exists. That story is getting old already”

“I can see that you haven’t changed at all, Inspector”

“No, you are the one that hasn’t changed at all!”

“Could you both please calm down? Don’t make history repeat itself” I don’t really blame Yomiel for running away. Remind me to never get on Inspector Cabanela’s bad side.

“I would like to talk to my lawyer, thank you very much”

“Your fiancée, Sissel, already has you covered. Your lawyer is that rookie from the Wright Anything Agency: Miss Athena Cykes. They should be here at any moment now”

“Your fiancée is called Sissel? What a coincidence! my cat is named Sissel too!”

“I told her the exact same thing when I meet her”

“Haha, this world truly is a small one” Yomiel said with a nervous laugh. Some moments later a police officer entered the room.

“Inspector Cabanela, sir, sorry to interrupt but the lawyers from the Wright Anything Agency have already arrived”

“They arrived just in time. This interrogatory isn’t getting us anywhere” The Inspector sat up from his seat and left the room. I followed him shortly after exchanging some looks with Yomiel. I didn’t know anything about the man, yet something didn’t set right by me. I felt like if I already knew him, but not from eleven years ago. It was something completely different. It was feeling that was impossible for me to explain.

“Wow, the detention center sure is packed up with people today. Aren’t those that rich family from Europe?”

“The Abadie family. I think they are here to meet with professor Sycamore, just like the first time we arrested him” I’m sure I have heard that surname somewhere before… Oh, of course! That ice skater that Liam likes is an Abadie. “It seems that their kids never stop getting into trouble. Haven’t you heard the rumors?”

“Uh, no? Which rumors are you talking about?”

“People on the streets say that their middle son, Adrien, got in some really naaasty business. He became involved with the wrong kind of people in hopes of uncovering their secrets, but they found out that he knew too much. He ran away. He tried to hide from them. And just when he thought that he was finally safe…” He made a long pause “THEY GOOOT HIM!”

“Ah! That is not funny! Don’t laugh” That was so cheap, yet he managed to startle me anyways “Are you dumb? His family is right there, what if they hear you? We are talking about their missing son, have some tact!” Why does he always have to act that way? “Grow up”

“Huh…” A teenager in yellow and a guy with two horns on a red suit were staring at us. “Not to interrupt Inspector Cabanela, but can we go meet with our client now?” Quick! Be professional!

“My name is detective I am a Lynne I am at your- Ah! I got it all wrong!” Bravo. “I’m Lynne, at your service!”

“Oh, it is nice to meet you Lynne. My name is Apollo Justice, and this is Athena Cykes” The guy with the horns on his head was talking to me. Gosh, this is so awkward. Should I shake their hands? I decide to shake their hands.

“Please follow me! Your client has been waiting for you!” I saw a dark skinned woman in a black dress get up from one of the seats. She was so beautiful, yet she had an extremely sad expression on her face. She almost seemed like a ghost. When I looked at her I was completely sure: This was the famous Sissel, Yomiel’s fiancée. Suddenly that weird and unexplainable feeling came back. What was happening to me?


	15. Façade

“Just what was that back there? “Forget about me and let me rot in hell already”?! You should have seen the look on Miss Abadie’s face after those words left Alfendi’s mouth. As if she wasn’t already worried sick about you!”

“I didn’t think anyone would get to hear that…” He muttered to himself before looking up to face me “This is so out of character, Layton. What happened to the perfect English gentleman?” He smirked at me, having fun out of my reaction. He was right, I wasn’t acting like myself. I was getting too worked up. "Where is your famous infinite patience?"

“Okaaay… Let’s start over from the beginning! Hi, my name is Maya Fey, but you can call me just Maya. The gentleman besides me is Phoenix Wright, attorney at law. It is good to meet you, professor Sycamore. See? Was that so hard?” Miss Fey managed to save the situation.

“It is a pleasure to meet you, Just Maya”

“Maya please tell me you aren’t already making puns. I-I mean: It is good to meet you, professor Sycamore. I-.”

“Oh, I know who you are. And I know very well why you came here: You are that famous lawyer who is all over the news who wants to take on my defense. Interesting... Very interesting” He looked as if he was about to eat the poor lawyer alive. “Mister Wright, are you going to save me?” Did he just… wink?!

“O-oh, well I wouldn’t word it that way but-.” Desmond gave him a look that left him speechless for some moments “Yeah, that’s basically the plan”

“Then you are going to need a lot of luck, because prosecutor Begnoche won’t rest until he gets a guilty verdict for me. Are you up to the challenge, Mister Wright?”

“O-of course I am!”

“Then I am looking forward to seeing you in court” I didn’t expect him to give in so easily. “Please save me, my hero” But of course he had only acceded to fool with him.

“Uh, could you please tell us what you were doing at the embassy the day of the Minister’s murder?”

“What if you tell me more about yourself first?” As uncooperative as ever.

“See Nick? I told you that everything was going to be okay! We are all getting along already. I knew that there was nothing to be afraid of” That only made Desmond’s smirk widen even more.

“Were you scared of me, Mister Wright?” He laughed “You don’t have to, I don’t bit-.”

“I am going to let Flora enter now that you have calmed down. Please excuse me” He had enough fun already. Maybe seeing his sort-of-niece would help him take the situation more seriously. The moment Flora entered the room he was like a completely different person, reminiscent of the Desmond Sycamore we met when we were travelling all over the world in search of the Azran eggs.

“Oh, you must be the famous Flora Reinhold. It is a pleasure to meet you, dear.” It was as if he was a completely different person around kids. That gave me an idea. I turned to Flora, who was standing still besides me clueless of what to say, and whispered to her ear.

“Ah, it is good to meet you too, Uncle Desmond!” After hearing that he looked so happy that it was kind of out of character. Maybe having Flora around will make him more cooperative.

“U-uncle? Why didn’t you tell me I had such a beautiful niece? You have to tell me: Who is the lucky one?”

“She is not exactly my daughter, Desmond. I took her in a pair of years ago. Didn’t I tell you that last year?” He started to laugh again.

“Of course I am aware of the situation. I was just fooling with you, professor. You have to learn how to have fun once in a while” Excluding our exchange at the beginning, everything had gone well so far. Maybe too well.

“Wait Nick, does that mean that those two are-?” I heard Miss Fey whispering behind me. Oh right, I haven't explained my exact relationship with professor Sycamore to them yet. Let's leave that for later.

“I am surprised to see that you are taking your arrest so well. When I spoke with agent Lestrange on the phone she told me otherwise” I certainly didn’t expect him to calm down so soon.

“It’s not like I have other choice… I-I mean, there is no point in being such a - how did agent Lestrange call it? - Drama queen” She got him “The past is in the past. I already got myself arrested, so what is the point? No need to make the situation more stressing than it already is. It’s hard enough for them already…” At that point I understood: Is not that he was starting to feel better, in fact I don’t think his mood had improved at all. He was trying his best to keep himself under control for Raymond, Martha and the Abadies: for his family.  

“Aw, that’s so sweet! We will prove your innocence in no time, professor! You can bet on it!” I might have been too harsh on him… He certainly is trying to become a better person, or at least to keep his temper under control. I do wonder: How long will he be able to keep that up? Even if he does so with good intentions, bottling up his emotions like that won’t do him any good. “Now, could you please tell us what you were doing at the embassy?”

“I… I actually went there to meet with Bill Hawks. There were some things I wanted to question him about. It seems that I won’t be able to get the answers I needed. But there is no point in lamenting about that now”

“You went to see the Prime Minister? May I know: Exactly which answers were you expecting to get out of him?” Mister Wright asked, way more comfortable than earlier.

“I would rather not talk about that” Knowing him those weren’t good news for us.

“What did you get yourself into?”

“Professor cut me some slack. If anything, he was the one who got involved in some nasty business” As if I wasn’t already aware of that. “I tried to talk to his secretary, but at the moment there was no one at the desk. I went to his office, but he was nowhere to be found. I decided that I would try another day and was about to leave when-.” He looked to the sides, with a nervous laugh “This is kind of embarrassing”

“… What happened?”

“I-I… I had to go to the bathroom” This has to be a joke “Hey, don’t look at me like that. I’m only human, after all. I spent quite some time in there and- Uh. The point is: After I was finished, I went out of the bathroom only to find a dozen of police officers waiting for me. I didn’t even know that the Minister was dead at that moment, yet they arrested me” Incredible.

“And no one believed in your story. I don’t blame them. The fact that you are being so secretive about your reasons to meet with the Minister only makes you look even more suspicious” Mister Wright added “Did no one see you get inside that bathroom?”

“I don’t know. If anyone did I certainly didn’t notice. I am afraid that is the only information I can give to you, Mister Wright. I didn’t kill that old man, please believe me” He was making eyes at the poor lawyer again.

“I-it is okay, professor. I believe in your story, I swear. Are you sure that you can’t share with us why you went in there, though?”

“Don’t get me wrong. I would love to but… It’s not easy to explain. I need some time to think.” He doesn’t trust us enough to tell us, it seems.

“Well, we can go investigate the crime scene while you think it better. The usual: Talk to the witnesses, question the detective in charge, find some clues and the like. After we are done with that we can come back and discuss what will be our plan for tomorrow. What do you think?” That was a good plan, Miss Fey.

“Alright, I won’t take more of your time then. Let me guess: Martha and company are waiting outside to talk with me, am I right?” I gently nodded “Yes, I can already hear Petunia scolding me. Go and have fun in your investigation. I will be waiting for you, Mister Lawyer” He added with another wink. Just as we were about to leave I took one last glance at Desmond: He was looking towards the floor with an empty expression on his face. Just how long do you plan to keep that act up?

“That was really good. Uncle Desmond really doesn’t seem like a bad person. We can’t let him down! Come on, to the crime scene!” Flora was already decided to tag along, and there was no way to change her mind. “I think he already likes you a lot, Mister Wright”

“Oh boy”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have decided to update with two new chapters (14 and 15) to make up for taking so long between chapters. I already have the whole story planned out and I'm always polishing some details in my head, and lately I have been feeling way more motivated to actually write it down and post it here thanks to all your comments <3 Tysm!


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